High voltage generator



N. E. LINDENBLAD 2,305,720

HIGH VOLTAGE GENERATOR 3 Sheets-Sheet l 1- n 7 1 II 1 265 245 l l i EZI i L H J 1 bf-E I I 12/9 231 L g 1 Dec. 22, 1942.

Original Filed Aug. 9 1953 7 238 l l l I l l l 220 l 1 I I I l l a u i :5? 24s Zoo 1 2/25 Dec. 22, 1942. N. E. LINDENBLAD HIGH VOLTAGE GENERATOR Original Filed Aug. 9, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVEN TOR. N/LS E. L/NDENBLAD ATTORNEY.

Patented Dec. 22, 1942 HIGH VOLTAGE GENERATOR Nils E. Lindenblad, Port Jeflerson, N. Y., assignor to Radio Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware Original application August 9, 1933, Serial No.

Divided and this application November 29, 1940 Serial No. 367,856

8 Claims.

My. present invention has as its main object the provision of methods and means for generating very high potentials or voltages at high energy levels.

enth divisional application and contains claims directed to a transformer system.

In another arrangement for producing high voltages according to my present invention, an

In one way of carrying out my invention for 5 induction electrode, either grounded or preferably maintained at a high voltage, is insulatingthe generation of high direct current voltages; I charge metallic units, preferably particles of metal, by actual conductive contact with a direct current source. Then, by moving'the particles away from the source, the voltages of the charges thereon are increased, in a manner which will be explained more fully hereinafter,

and the charges are ultimately deposited upon a low voltage gradient-section of a charge-storing device or container.

-.This application is one of several divisions of my original parent patent application Serial No. 684,323, filed Aug. 9, 1933, which has now matured into Patent #2,2l0,492, dated Aug. 6, 1940, which contains, but does not claim, the identical disclosure of the instant application. The

parent patent application contains claims directed to the belt system and also the combined belt and disc system. A first divisional application Serial No. 4,475, filed Feb. 1, 1935, which has matured into Patent 2,070,972, dated Feb.

16, 1937, contains claims directed to therotor system wherein an inductive principle is com bined with centrifugal force and utilized to increase the output voltage. A second divisional application Serial No. 8,236, filed Feb. 26, 1935, which has now matured into Patent 2,119,588, dated June 7, l.938,'contains claims directed to the high voltage generating system wherein charging units are arrangedin parallel with means provided to discharge them in series. A third divisional application Serial No. 81,360, filed May 23, 1936, which has matured into Patent 2,171,242, dated Aug. 29, 1939, contains claims directed to a high voltage generator combined with a rectifier and a transformer system connected to elements of the rectifier. A fourth divisional application Serial No. 201,528, filed April 12, 1930, which has matured into Patent #2,284,159, dated May 26, 1942, contains claims directed to a plurality of disc systems with rectifying means associated therewith. A fifth divisional application Serial No. 315,279, filed Jan. 23, 1940, contains claims directed to a high voltage inductive system disclosed in the original application and applied to gases. A sixth divisional application Serial No. 315,280, filed Jan. 23, 1940, now Patent No. 2,275,635, issued March 10, 1942, contains claims directed to a plurality of pulsating devices. This application is a sevly separated from a chargeable medium which may be a solid, a liquid, or a gas, and, by the use of a point discharge electrode system connected to a direct current source or preferably to ground, ionization or corona is caused to take place through and/or about the chargeable medium. The charged medium is then moved or carried to a low potential area on a chargeable element, the high voltage surface of which is brought up to an exceedingly high voltage by the continued deposits from the charged medium. in a further modification of my present invention, both. my contact and induction" principles, about which more will be said later, are utilized.

A further and more specific object of my present invention is to provide systems which utilize my improved contact and induction principles for charging. solid mediums such as belts and discs, for charging liquids such as oil and oil containing metallic particles in suspension. and for charging gases.

In some instances, in carrying into effect the purposes of my present invention, rather high initial excitation voltages are required. If it is attempted to cascade alternating current transformers to build up a high alternating current voltage, which voltage may be used directly in some forms of my present invention, or if. it is attempted to use the cascaded transformer system so that the high alternating current voltage developed may be rectified so as to obtain a high direct current voltage, it will be found that in.- sulation difliculties in the final transformer stage will prove practically insurmountable. That is to say, if the core of the final transformer is grounded, the high voltage generated in the coils will require exceedingly heavy insulation, and

for all practical purposes it will be found almost impossible to provide the needed insulation. Accordingly, a further object of my present invention is to provide an improved cascaded system of transformers for developing an exceedingly high alternating current or direct current voltage in which the core of each stage will be sub jected to no more than the voltage developed by any particular stage, rather than as explained before, be subject to the integrated voltage up to the voltage of that stage.

Still further objects of'my present invention are to provide an improved belt system for generating high voltages; to provide an improved disc system for generating high voltages; to provide improved combinations of discs alone or combinations of discs or belt or belts arranged in such a way as to have an efiective output voltage much higher than the voltage generated by any one system; to provide a symmetrical network system in which various elements are charged in parallel but discharged in series so as to obtain a much higher resultant output voltage as compared to the voltage applied to each element; and many others which will be apparent as the description of my present invention proceeds. This description will be given in greater detail with the aid of the accompanying drawings which, however, are not to be considered in any way llmitative of my present invention but are to be considered only illustrative. Turning to them:

Fig. l is a schematic diagram of a multi-stage rectifier which may be used for deriving directly exceedingly high direct current voltages or which may be used for the three-stage rectifier system;

Fig. la is a diagram of a full wave rectifier and its associated transformer core;

Fig. lb is a diagram of a three-phase haliwave rectifier with associated transformer cores;

Fig. 1c is a diagram of a rectifier and its assoelated transformer core;

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of another modification of a multl-stage rectifier;

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a multi-stage rectifier similar to that of Fig. 1, except that the voltage of the transformer is further stepped down to operate the primary spark coil system;

Turning to Fig. 1, I have illustrated within a group of physically separated metallic contain ers 200, 202, 204, transformers having cores 206. and 250. The metallic casings 200, 202, 205 are insulatingly supported from ground by means oi insulators EM and the common supporting member 2 I0. ?ower supply for the transformers is fed in through the input leads 2 l 5 to the winding 2 i 8. The secondary winding 220 which has the same number of turns as 2E8, feeds the primary on core 208, the secondary 220 on core 208 feeds the primary 226 on core 2m and so on.

Conductors 228, 230, 23l connect the respective windings 248, 250, 252 conductively to the respective metallic casings 200, 202, 200.

Windings 232, 204, 236 on the cores 206, 208, N0 supply heating or filament current to the tube rectifiers 238, 240, 246. Consequently, high voltage windings 248, 250, 252, swing each cathode with respect to the respective transformer cores at say 15,000 to 20,000 volts. Insulation between the windings for such voltages may readily be provided as known in the art. By the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, therefore, it should be at once clear that no transformer has to stand a voltage between its core and windings greater than the highest direct current voltage of each stage, which may be made alike. However, as connected, the direct current voltages of each stage add. The resultant output from conductor 254 is a very high negative voltage of good power and of any value according to design, whereas if lead 254 is grounded and the input is sent into leads 2l6a an exceedingly high positive potential with respect to ground may be drawn from container 200.

Resistors 258, 260 are provided to keep the potential equally distributed through the system in the event that one unit, especially the charging condensers 282. 2, 2, should vary or have more leakage than others.

If desired, besides or instead of resistors as shown in Fig. 3, safety gaps 210, 272, 214 may be placed across the condensers 282, 2", 2" for breakdown in case of excessive voltage. Also, low resistors 210, 218, 200 are connected in the plate leads of the rectifiers to prevent or kill oscillatory discharge ii and when the safety gaps 210, 212, 214 function. The resistors 258, 2" 0! Fig. 1 and the resistors 282, 284, 288 of Fig. 3 are of the order of one hundred megohms each whereas the resistors 216, 218, 280 of Fig. 3 are of the order of five ohms each in magnitude. The values and voltages indicated are merely illustrative and by no means are to be construed as limiting my invention thereto.

The transformers may, of course, be metallically supported by their cores within each of the casings and the various rectifiers may also be suitably supported therein.

The arrangement shown in Fig. 3 is quite similar to that shown in Fig. 1. However, the secondary 234, for example, of core 206, in Fig. 8 oi. the transformer of the first stage is designed for a voltage of, say, volts which is further stepped down to, say, eleven volts as indicated to operate the primary of a spark coil system 282 in Fig. 3. Vibration of the buzzer 284 will, of course, as is well known in the art, cause high voltages to be obtained from the output leads 286 which are then rectified by the rectifier 238. Otherwise, the operation of the arrangement shown in Fig. 3 is similar to that given in connection with Fig. 1, output voltage being taken from the final conductor 254 of negative polarity.

The shell 400 of the first stage of the cascaded rectifier system of Fig. 3 may be grounded or mounted upon insulating supports 402. The sun ceeding shells 404, 400, may be vertically superposed upon shell 300 and supported thereby by means of insulators #08, Hill. This construction offers the advantage that the insulators 108, 0 are effectively in series to ground and so serve the dual function of supporting the casings, as well as oil'erlng their resistances in series to the high voltages of the succeeding stages. In this manner, the problem oi producing insulators suflicient to withstand the final voltage of the final stage to ground such as the final right-hand insulator 2l2 of Fig, 1 is avoided. If desired, rather than have a compression system of insulators, the shells may be suspended from each other in a similar way, the insulators 402, 404 being connected or fixed to some support so that they, together with the succeeding insulators are subject to a tensile stress.

As illustrated in Fig, 1, each transformer core may be insulatingly or conductively supported within its shell by a support M9, the various rectifier tubes being supported by the electrode leads or in any other suitable way.

In connection with a single stage rectifier tube, and also in connection with the vacuum tube rectifiers illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, three element tubes may often preferably be used, and in such cases the grid is preferably connected when high voltages are involved directly to the filament. It will be found that this connection will allow sufilcient current to pass through the grid, the grid serving in that case to act as an efllcient shield around the filament and preventing the same from violent electrostatic forces which would tend to destroy it. Other potential of the grid, i. e. biasing arrangement, may, of

course, be maintained pending conditions calling for such and in a manner which is known to those skilled in the art. 7

The feature of directly connecting the grid to the filament for cathode protection purposes is illustrated in the figures of my original applicatio'n, and also in Figs. 1 and 2. In Fig. 2, the grids 300, 302, 304 of the vacuum tube rectifiers 238, I", 248 are connected through the conductors as illustrated to the midpoints of the respective secondary windings 232, I and 236. A further feature of my present invention, as illustrated in connection with Fig. 2, resides in the use of a common core for all the windings of the different stages. This common core, as illustrated, has therein gaps I06, 308 in which there are inserted the insulating sheets Ill), "2. This arrangement is an alternative to the method already described of preventing insulation breakdown between the windings of the later stages and the cores. However, if ordinary sixty cycle supply is fed into the primary winding 2", the system will be subject to poor voltage regulation. Consequently, it is preferable that the inlet leads 2IG be supplied with alternating currents of 500 cycles or more,

Other forms of rectifier rather than those illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, may be used to good advantage. Thus, as shown in Fig. la, the rectifiers within such shells as 200 of Fig.1 may be of the full wave rectifier. type. The midpoints of the filament'heating windings of the system shown in Fig. 1 may be connected to opposite ends of the high voltage winding 2",

the midpoint of which is connected to the shell as illustrated.

If desired, a three-phase half wave rectifier may be placed within each shell and such an arrangement is diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. lb, detailed description being omitted inasmuch as it is believed that those skilled in the art can readily follow the diagram.

It is not necessary, as illustrated in Fig. 1, that the rectifiers be connected so that the cathodes are connected to the shells. In order to reverse polarity, the plate and cathode connections may be reversed as indicated in Fig. 1c, in which the filament on the contrary is connected to the high voltage bus system whereas the plate or anode of each rectifier is connected through the high voltage winding to the shell 200.

Various changes'will readily suggest themselves in carrying out the principles of my present invention. Accordingly, my present invention is not to be considered limited by the various illus trations given but on the other hand is to be given the full scope indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A high voltage transformation unit comprising a metallic casing insulated from ground, a transformer within said casing, a pulsating device within said casing and coupled to said transformer, and a rectifier within said casing and connected to said pulsating device.

2. A high voltage transformation unit com prising at least one metallic casing insulated from the ground, a transformer within said casing, a vibratory device within said casing and coupled to said transformer, a rectifier within said casing and connected to said vibratory device, a spark gap, and a condenser within said casing and connected to said rectifier.

3. A device for use in a high voltage system comprising a plurality of metallic shells located adjacent one another and insulatingly mounted from ground potential, a transformer located within each one of said metallic shells, a rectifier located within each one of said metallic shells and connected to said transformer, a resistance connected to each one of said shells, each one of said shells connected to an adjacent unit through said resistance to maintain equal distribution of potential throughout said system.

4. A high voltage transformation system comprising a metallic casing member insulatedly mounted from ground potential, a transformer having a plurality of windings within said casing, a portion of at least one of said transformer windings connected to saidcasing, a-

vibratory device including .a spark coil located within said casing member and connected to said transformer, and a rectifier located within said casing member and connected to said vibratory device.

5. A high voltage transformation unit comprising a plurality of metallic casing members, a

transformer having common core portions located in each one of said casings, a rectifier within each casing, a transformer winding located on a portion of the common core of each casing, said windings connected to said rectifiers, at least one of said casings having an input winding located on a portion of said core and at least one other casing having an input winding located on another portion of said core.

6. A high voltage transformation unit comprising a plurality of metallic casing members, a transformer having common core portions located in all of said casings, a rectifier within each casing, a transformer winding located on a portion of the common core of each casing, an insulating member separating portions of said common core, said winding connected to said rectifier, at least one of said casings having an input winding located on a portion of said core, and at least one other casing having an input winding located on another portion of said core.

7. A high voltage transformation unit comprising a plurality of metallic casing members, a transformer having common core portions located in all of said casings, a rectifier within each casing, a transformer winding located on a portion of the common core of each casing, said winding connected to said rectifier, at least one of said casings having an input winding located on a portion of said core, and at least one other casing having an output winding located on another portion of said core, and a resistance connected in series between adjacent casings.

8. A high voltage transformation unit comprising a metallic casing member insulated from ground, a transformer within said casing. said transformer having an input winding, an output winding, a filament winding with a center tap and a high voltage winding, a rectifier having at least an anode, a grid and a cathode electrode located within said casing. one side of said high voltage winding connected to said casing, the other side of said high voltage winding connected to the grid electrode and the tap on said filament winding, said filament winding being connected in circuit with said cathode, a condenser within said casing, one side of which is connected thereto, the other side of said condenser being connected to said anode and to an adjacent casing.

NILS E. LINDENBLAD. 

